Brightman's announcement that she had signed a contract to train for a flight to the International Space Station was well-covered in the British print and broadcast media. Here are a few clips: BBC News | The Guardian | The Telegraph

Tykeanaut

If you don't know who she is chappy, you must be a lot younger than me!

chappy

Thanks Robert for this useful information regarding Sarah Brightman.

A message for Tykeanaut, I won't be revealing my age ...I'm not into music because I'm deaf, can't hear the music. Now I know who Sarah Brightman is. I thought Timothy Peake would have be the next Briton to go into space...

randy

I just hope she's going to be doing some serious science there, not just goofing off.

Robert Pearlman

While I expect Brightman will have a science program, science is certainly not the only worthwhile contribution she can make on the station. Richard Garriott created artwork and tested earth observation software; Charles Simonyi (and others) held amateur radio sessions with students, Anousheh Ansari blogged and Guy Laliberté held a worldwide simulcast to raise awareness about the need for clean water on Earth.

Space (and the space station) are not only about science, and so even the magic tricks and sci-fi movie filmed by Garriott were important for extending our culture and humanity into space...

gliderpilotuk

I'm sure she won't be using the opportunity to boost her album sales

Robert Pearlman

Along those lines, chief cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev told Interfax he does not rule out Brightman could have announced her intention to fly to the space station to advertise her new album.

"This is not the first time such a situation has arose. Of course, this information is news to me, but I'm not very surprised. Many years ago there was an option to send one singer into space. He had undergone a medical selection and there were plans to sign a contract with him. I don't have precise information on the situation with Sarah Brightman, but such things are probably possible, yes," Krikalev told Interfax-AVN.

Sources in the rocket and space industry earlier told Interfax-AVN that Brightman, who announced her wish to make a tourist flight to the ISS in October, will probably not fly. "It is very probable that the singer said she may fly to the ISS to fuel interest in her year-long world tour, which she will begin next year," the source said.

(It should be noted that Interfax and its sources' track record when it comes to accurately reporting about spaceflight participant selections has been less than stellar, so consider this report accordingly. That Brightman timed her news to help promote album sales doesn't necessarily negate her also flying to the station.)

Roscosmos head Vladimir Popovkin said that plan could be off the table because the Russian space agency is considering extending to flight from eight days to one month.

In that case, he said, Brightman would have to give up her seat to a professional.

gliderpilotuk

All the drama of an Andrew Lloyd Webber musical.

It's on; it's off, but it ain't over until the (not so fat) lady sings.

Hart Sastrowardoyo

Sarah Brightman says she initially turned down the chance to be a private spaceflight participant:

She tells Seven magazine, "When I first was asked to do it, I thought 'I don't think so'. It's a really important step to take. But the second time I felt ready.

"I'm feeling anticipation about the flight, but no apprehension, just how I feel before I go on stage."

Robert Pearlman

Russia's space agency Roscosmos said on Monday it has reached an agreement with Space Adventures to proceed with the plans to put British singer Sarah Brightman on a Soyuz flight to the International Space Station (ISS) in October 2015, RIA Novosti reports.

"The sides will discuss in the near future the implementation of this project, including Sarah Brightman's preparation for the flight and the program of her activities on board the orbital station," Roscosmos said in a statement.

johntosullivan

When she was asked to do it?

That sounds very strange. Is Space Adventures "asking" random multi-millionaires to go to space? I would have thought that the space flight participants would have been space enthusiasts seeking this opportunity.

Robert Pearlman

Even well-to-do space enthusiasts don't always think they have the "right stuff" go to space. When I worked at Space Adventures, we actively pursued affluent individuals who had an stated interest in space, including Guy Laliberté and Dennis Tito.

It doesn't mean that they wouldn't have eventually come to the idea themselves but as a company, Space Adventures had an interest in being proactive.

Robert Pearlman

Yuri Lonchakov, head of the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center, has said that Brightman is scheduled to begin training in August or September for her 10-day trip to the International Space Station.

She is slated to launch with Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergei Volkov and European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Andreas Mogensen on Soyuz TMA-18M on Oct. 4, 2015.

Hart Sastrowardoyo

That's interesting because Brightman had concert dates scheduled for August... before an ankle injury forced her to postpone/cancel her appearances.

Robert Pearlman

Japanese entrepreneur Satoshi Takamatsu has been confirmed by Roscosmos as backup to Sarah Brightman for her Sept. 2015 ten-day mission to the International Space Station.

Takamtsu is the founder and CEO of Space Travel, a space tourism firm in Japan, which has an agreement to market Space Adventures' programs in the country.

"We have worked with Mr. Takamatsu over the last decade and as we continue our efforts to expand private spaceflight opportunities, we look forward to work closely with him and his newly formed Space Travel firm in providing these opportunities to the people of Japan," said Tom Shelley, President of Space Adventures, in September. "Mr. Takamatsu is a big space fan, but also a very successful businessman and brings his own unique experience as the only person to direct a television broadcast commercial onboard the International Space Station. I am looking forward to a very fruitful partnership."

As the CEO of Space Films, Takamatsu directed TV commercials shot aboard the International Space Station, including for the Japanese sports drink Pocari Sweat.

We have succeeded in having three space projects on board the International Space Station. In 2001, we shot the Pocari Sweat commercial in HD in space, and in 2005 we have shot the last episode for the Nissin Cup Noodles NO BORDERS series. In 2008, we conducted the Olympus space project as well, in which astronaut Wakata took photographs of Earth from the Japanese module Kibo and we used those for a photography exhibition.

Robert Pearlman

ITAR-TASS reports on the clothing choices for Sarah Brightman and her crewmates, though somewhat conflates her on-orbit flight suit with her Sokol suit:

British singer Sarah Brightman will fly to the International Space Station dressed in a velvet-blue space suit with an emblem of a flag of the United Kingdom.

The details of the costume of the next space tourist were disclosed by Alexander Yarov, Director General of the Kentavr-Nauka company that has been the main designer of space outfit for Russian cosmonauts for the past 40 years. "During a short space flight Sarah Brightman intends to wear a spacious polo-style shirt, a light suit, a Kentavr space suit intended to minimize the pressure of space load during the flight and a Bracelet elastic belt," Yarov told TASS on Monday.

Russian cosmonaut Sergey Volkov - Chief pilot of the Soyuz TMA-18M spaceship, which will take Brightman into space in September, has chosen the colors for the clothes for the space crew. Volkov decided on the velvet-blue shades for the space clothes which will differ in the emblems of the space crew's national flags only, Yarov said.